The tremendous growth of educational institutions' electronic data provides the opportunity to extract information that can be used to predict students' overall success, predict students' dropout rate, evaluate the performance of teachers and instructors, improve the learning material according to students' needs, and much more. This paper aims to…

Student retention and completion rates are challenging issues in higher education. In the academic domain, pressure exists for every institution to come up with strategies that support student success from enrollment through graduation without compromising academic or accreditation standards. This paper presents the findings from a review of…

Reviews four current books on the dropout problem. Two are termed state of the art, but all are limited because the needs of at-risk students are numerous, the programs for them are diverse, and theories of student engagement are not yet well developed. (DM)

Arguing that reliable and valid dropout rate estimates are prerequisite to establishment of causal factors and intervention programs, this article examines differences in definitions of dropouts, computational methods, and the complexities in defining cohorts, as well as the importance of sample attrition. Several sources of error are discussed.…

Discusses the concept of pacing as it relates to distance education. Highlights include the relationship of pacing to academic standards, activity scheduling, student independence, student interaction, effective utilization of media, course materials, learning methods, student motivation, drop-out rate, and the cost effectiveness of pacing. (LRW)

Black students who had positive interracial contact prior to college experienced more positive interracial contact on campus, had stronger feelings of being prepared for higher education, and expressed less trauma and more satisfaction with their decision to attend college. These findings support K-12 school integration policies recommended by…

Reports on a study of 6,718 college students enrolled in an introductory economics course to determine factors associated with successful achievement. Finds high overall academic achievement in high school and a strong mathematics background, especially calculus, were the two most important factors. (CFR)

Reviews the origins and development of the 20th-century term "drop-out." Asserts that the social construction of the drop-out problem explicitly marks the time when secondary education became a common expectation in the United States. Contends that secondary education's success created the concept of a drop-out "problem." (CFR)

Describes a study which examined relationships between academic persistence and turn-around time, feedback interval, and contacts between student and institution beyond assignment submissions at Allama Iqbal Open University, Darling Downs Institute of Advanced Education, Open Learning Institute of British Columbia, Tasmanian State Institute of…

Describes a survey of 724 management students in New Zealand's Technical Correspondence Institute which was conducted to determine whether the introduction of educational technologies could decrease the dropout rate. The multiple linear regression model that was used to analyze the questionnaire responses is presented, and predictor variables are…

Presents study results of the influence of adolescent childbearing and marriage on the likelihood of girls completing high school. Reports striking differences by ethnicity. Concludes that the effect of teen marriage on school completion was significant only for whites, with Latinas likely to drop out regardless of pregnancy, and married African…